A History of the Moravian ChurchHutton, J. E. (Joseph Edmund)
Religion
A History of the Moravian Church
Hutton, J. E. (Joseph Edmund)
Moravian Church -- History
But the next Reformer, Matthew of Janow, carried the movement further
(1381-93). The cause was the famous schism in the Papacy. For the long
period of nearly forty years (1378-1415) the whole Catholic world was
shocked by the scandal of two, and sometimes three, rival Popes, who
spent their time abusing and fighting each other. As long as this schism
lasted it was hard for men to look up to the Pope as a true spiritual
guide. How could men call the Pope the Head of the Church when no one
knew which was the true Pope? How could men respect the Popes when
some of the Popes were men of bad moral character? Pope Urban VI. was
a ferocious brute, who had five of his enemies secretly murdered; Pope
Clement VII., his clever rival, was a scheming politician; and Pope John
XXIII. was a man whose character will scarcely bear describing in print.
Of all the scandals in the Catholic Church, this disgraceful quarrel
between rival Popes did most to upset the minds of good men and to
prepare the way for the Reformation. It aroused the scorn of John
Wycliffe in England, and of Matthew of Janow in Bohemia. "This schism,"
he wrote, "has not arisen because the priests loved Jesus Christ and His
Church, but rather because they loved themselves and the world."
But Matthew went even further than this. As he did not attack any
Catholic dogma--except the worship of pictures and images--it has been
contended by some writers that he was not so very radical in his views
after all; but the whole tone of his writings shows that he had lost
his confidence in the Catholic Church, and desired to revive the simple
Christianity of Christ and the Apostles. "I consider it essential," he
wrote, "to root out all weeds, to restore the word of God on earth,
to bring back the Church of Christ to its original, healthy, condensed
condition, and to keep only such regulations as date from the time of
the Apostles." "All the works of men," he added, "their ceremonies and
traditions, shall soon be totally destroyed; the Lord Jesus shall alone
be exalted, and His Word shall stand for ever." Back to Christ! Back to
the Apostles! Such was the message of Matthew of Janow.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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